Jets at Blues
The Winnipeg Jets are holding down the second wild card in the Western Conference and trying to stave off a trio of pursuers as they continue a four-game road trip with a visit to the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday. The Jets, who have alternated wins and losses over their last five games, are coming off a 3-1 victory at Central Division-leading Nashville but have had their issues against St. Louis. The Blues have won six consecutive matchups, including both this season.
St. Louis capped off a 3-1-1 road trip with an offensive eruption in a 6-1 drubbing at Toronto on Saturday and suddenly have renewed hopes at the division title following a tailspin by the Predators. A focal point for the Blues is regaining their mojo at Scottrade Center after dropping four of their last six games at home. "It's no easier at home than it is on the road, it's 60 minutes against a team that's hungry and we have to lay it on the line," captain David Backes said.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TSN3 (Winnipeg), FSN Midwest (St. Louis)
ABOUT THE JETS (33-21-12): Winnipeg, which lost in a shootout to the Blues on Feb. 26, will be without second-leading scorer Bryan Little (undisclosed) for a second straight game while defenseman Dustin Byfuglien is sidelined for two-to-four weeks. Little tops the team in goals with 24 and also plays a pivotal role on the power-play and penalty-killing units. “You're going to need different guys to step up in different situations. You're not going to replace the skill set of Bryan Little, but we're trying to make his loss as minimal as possible,” rookie Adam Lowry said.
ABOUT THE BLUES (41-19-5): Forward Olli Jokinen's debut with St. Louis was cut short when he suffered an upper-body injury against his former team Saturday, but he is expected to be back in the lineup along with defenseman Jay Bouwmeester (illness) on Tuesday. Alexander Steen and rookie Jori Lehtera each collected three assists in the rout of the Maple Leafs to halt point droughts of six and five games, respectively. "We need to continue to go here," Steen said after the Blues matched a season high with 44 shots on goal. "It’s not like we’re satisfied, we continue to want more.”
OVERTIME
1. Blues G Brian Elliott is 7-2-2 with a 2.79 goals-against average versus Winnipeg.
2. Jets F Michael Frolik had scored four goals during a career-best six-game point streak.
3. Steen has 10 goals and 18 points in 23 games against the Jets.